Book Review by Edward D. Dobson, President, Traders Press, Inc.

Michael Jenkins, an accomplished technician and a serious full-time trader, has produced two books of particular interest to traders interested in Gann and Fibonacci-based trading methods. These two books, though titled differently, are really two part of the same intellectual tome. The primary difference between the books is that "Geometry..." is more detailed in its description geometric formations from which predictions are derived than is "Chart Reading."

It is my opinion that the methods in these books work some of the time and are somewhat accurate in some time frames. This is not to say that they are useless. Traders for whom the big picture is helpful (most of us) may find luminaries such as Gann to provide a comforting substrate against which more specific techniques can be employed. Such filtration is not to be underestimated and is the kind of thing in which Jenkins is engaged in these books. He deals with the nitty-gritty of the time-price amalgam and demonstrates diagrammatically that relatively simple gymnastics applied to a price chart can reveal a number of market turns to fall at constructed intersections.

This work has a two-fold character. First, it is an agglomeration of methods to determine the direction of the current trend and to predict the extent of a price move. Second, interspersed among these are a number of specific ideas and tips that fall into the category of trading tactics. The treatment of trend and extent of move occupies the major portion of these books. It relies heavily on the author's take on Gann's work and Fibonacci predictors. Of special note is the discussion of arcs and circles used as measured-move indicants, wherein the author develops a couple of interesting wrinkles re-targeting the end of a move.

An attempt seems to have been made to cover the waterfront by describing at least seven kinds of techniques, ranging from support and resistance through wave action and mirror images (shades of Wilder's "Adam" idea) to volume. Many are touched upon primarily with generalities that apply to only some market conditions (without making the limitation clear). The books provide, thereby, a background against which the reader can further his education. Numerous bits and pieces of information are sprinkled throughout the text. These are valuable to the extent that they are correct and the time frames to which they are applicable are specified. The task of determining these critical matters via track record is among the many that are left to the reader to accomplish, in spite of the fact the author intimates, even states outright, that he has done the work but will not reveal its results. He gives two reasons: that there is not space in the books and that if the reader expects to profit, he must do the work.

General comments: These books present a rather fragmented, generalized view of several trading approaches. Except for the discussion of circles and arcs (which is fascinating and which often proves amazingly accurate as a target predictor), it proves to be relatively superficial. This impression may be due to a lack of cohesion among the techniques. Some of the statements reveal a dated outlook, such as stating that one strategy "focuses on scalping 80 to 100 points per day (day trading the S&P). Such remarks might be a problem only for the neophyte, to whom they would be misleading. On the positive side, I believe that some specifics are found in a few other sources. An example is that a bullish trend is revealed by higher bottoms, whereas it takes lower bottoms AND tops to define a bearish trend . . . useful to be aware of. There are a number of such tidbits, but the reader must dig them out and discriminate them from the rest of the verbiage.

Some of the techniques and tips should prove useful. The section on arcs and circles in both books is potentially useful and academically appealing. Traders interested in the work of Gann and Fibonacci will find much material of interest and use, such are the construction and use of Gann Square and angle lines.

Review by Edward D. Dobson, President Traders Press, Inc.